Round 'Round the MerryGo'Round
by Jeva
Summary: There was a reason why Shinichi preferred murderers over thieves...especially phantom thieves. They always seemed to make everything into double meanings!


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'Round 'Round the Merry-Go-'Round  


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"You make things worse all the time for me."

Edogawa Conan blinked up at the thief he'd cornered once again. It had been yet another case where someone had thought it would have been a grand-old idea to do a theft-murder while pinning the whole thing on the elusive phantom thief Kaitou Kid. Really, sometimes the teenager-turned-pipsqueak had to wonder how much this occurred outside of Megure-keibu's district. As it was, the murder case had been solved, the item stolen had been returned, and Conan had been able to corner the real Kid who had chosen to disguise himself as one of the three suspects this time. It was a big surprise, however, to suddenly see Kid go from looking like one of the suspects and then reappearing after a short black-out as Kudo Shinichi in casual clothes and a backward cap. A large frown was coming onto the not-child's face at the sight. "Oi...how is it that I make things worse for you? _You're_ the one constantly disguising as Kudo Shinichi!"

Kid coughed into a bare-handed fist before looking up with a bright grin. "Sure. As Kudo Shinichi. But all those times have been helpful for some person, ne, tantei-kun?" He then leaned up against the wall, arms crossing over his chest and chin tucking into his chest slightly. "Besides...I've always done quick jobs. There was never anything...permanent."

And if Shinichi hadn't picked up on _that_ uncomfortable note, there was no way he could ever consider himself a true detective. He looked up to the man who could have been his own original age for all he knew, eyes softening slightly behind the glasses as he also crossed his arms and then looked to the floor for a minute. "You mean the murders," he stated as calmly as he could. "Of course they would get to you, right? Kaitou Kid's number one rule is no one gets hurt, isn't that right?"

"Well, it would be," Kid muttered in a sour manner only to clear his throat and straighten a bit when the not-kid eyed him curiously. "That is...I would _like_ for it to be that way, but..." He waved a hand airily. "All these idiots I run into whenever I run into you on heists. Like that time with Magic Club Users? Or that time at the Sunset Mansion when we all had to pretend to die so that way the old woman wouldn't off us all--"

Shinichi glared at him. "Okay, I get it already--"

"No, wait!" the thief continued with a raised finger, brow furrowing as if he was trying to drag up a long-ago memory. "Was there a murder in that old man's duel match with me?"

"The Ocean Jewel heist?" the shrunken detective asked, his smaller brow also furrowing as he thought back.

"Yeah, that one."

"No," Shinichi firmly stated. "No, I don't think anyone died...though you _could_ have caused even more of a mess with that helicopter prank!"

"Heh," snickered Kid shamelessly before ticking off another finger. "But _you_ almost blew me up on that motorcycle. Very nasty and mean of you, I think. And then there was that unofficial heist involving that diamond in the old house--"

"Which I let you get out of scot-free--"

"Only because tubby almost got sliced into pieces, ne?" The kaitou snickered again at the withering look he got. "Cute group you got there, really. One of the little girls looks familiar though...oh! That reminds me! There was that case of that Egg..."

Shinichi frowned before looking up. "Oi--"

"And don't get me started on the plane incident!" bemoaned Kid as he lifted his head to the ceiling and covered his eyes with his right hand as he held his left hand out in a warding-off motion. "I _still_ get nightmares from that! I can't believe I even _survived_ that one!"

"YOU WEREN'T EVEN ON THE PLANE WHEN IT CRASHED, BAKA!"

An eye peeked out between two fingers. "Eh?" There was a thoughtful pause. "Oh yeah..." he muttered, moving his right hand under his chin while his left arm propped up its opposite's elbow. "I was acting as the nice kaitou and led all the police on a merry chase to get them in a position so you guys could land that thing...never mind. That one was fun."

Shinichi sweatdropped. Just what was fun? And what the hell was Kid doing just talking about the many different run-ins the two of them had had? Was it to stall? But no...he must have known that he was out of tranq darts and he'd taken off his shoes before coming into the home...

So what was the point of this conversation?

Oblivious to the other's puzzlement, the phantom thief continued on, "And just recently there was that painting heist thing, right? Did you _really_ have to kick me that hard?" The light whine in the taller boy's voice was very much apparent as he rubbed at his abdomen in remembered pain.

This was getting ridiculous, Shinichi finally decided as he looked back at the door to the room that was slightly ajar.

"And then there was this case..."

That made the not-elementary-school-kid jerk his eyes back to Kid, whose head was bowed to where wisps of dark hair shadowed his eyes, expression blank but firm. "I don't know about you, tantei-kun," the young man in disguise said after a moment of silence. He lifted his head again and looked down to meet the shrunken detective's, "but all these run-ins with you seem to be very ill-fated for some innocent bystanders. I'm a kaitou, not a robber, not a burglar, not a simple thief that does whatever is necessary to get his object. I don't like to see such things during my heists, so I avoid it whenever possible..."

Shinichi could almost hear the next word and supplied it for the obviously troubled thief cautiously. "But...?"

Blue eyes that seemed almost exactly the same shade of color and shape as Kudo Shinichi's closed as a wry smile crossed the enigmatic young man's lips. "Well...see, that's the thing," he said slowly, as if this was a performance he'd practiced many times by himself and showing to someone else for the first time. "I think these run-ins are a bit more than run-ins. I mean--" Again, a hand was waved airily, making Conan sweatdrop when he realized that there was actually a coin being juggled between fingers on the hand. "It's kind of obvious, isn't it?"

Shinichi blinked. "Eh?"

The coin froze in its position between the forefinger and thumb as a grin spread on the other's face.

_Flick._ The coin spun up into the air.

"Wanna make a bet?" the kaitou offered with an innocent air as he put his hands in his pockets, slouching his shoulders in a manner that Conan knew was definitely _not_ Kudo Shinichi's. Maybe it was Kid's own personal relaxed manners?

"Bet?" he asked, confused.

The grin continued to widen in only a manner that Kaitou Kid seemed capable of. "Well, I know there's the whole illegal underage gambling, but I figured with you really being around my age and us being almost adults, you wouldn't mind too much to make a wager." An eyebrow was cocked. "That is...if you think you're lucky enough to beat my luck."

A bit put off by what the thief had just openly confessed--his own age as well as the knowledge that Kid knew who Conan was--but not allowing it to get the best of him, Shinichi mimicked the smug air, stuffing his small hands into his pockets and meeting the other's eyes determinedly. "A simple bet, ne? No tricks?"

Kid pulled out his hands and carefully pushed up both of his sleeves in a mocking manner before holding his arms up and turning them back and forth to allow the smaller teenager to see all sides of the limbs. "Nothin' up my sleeves, of course," he said cheekily just as a _ting!_ sounded in the room. The thief then placed a foot over the coin that had spun around on the floor between them for a moment.

Shinichi smirked a bit at the action. "And what about your shoe?"

Another raised eyebrow. "I haven't figured out how to work a trick with a trap-door shoe, sorry." A thoughtful looked crossed Kid's face before he then muttered, "And that one pair _really_ pinches my toes..."

"So what's the bet?"

"Simple." A shrug followed by Kaitou Kid's legendary Poker Face slamming down on his face and creating a smirking mask that was more serious and eerily devoid of real emotion at the same time. "It's on a bit of knowledge that only I have and a bit that only you have...and whether or not my theory is right about both of out bits of knowledge. So...wanna play?"

Shinichi's brow furrowed in thought. "So you basically came to this faux-heist to both see that the imposter was caught and so that I could corner you in a place where almost no one would think to look just so you could drag out a conversation that reviewed our past meetings before asking me to make a bet about knowledge and theories?"

Kid laughed a bit, rubbing the back of his neck for a moment. "Well, actually, I just recapped all of those incidents because this one heist-murder-case _really_ got to me. That and I wanted to make sure that you wouldn't be mistaken with my intentions. We've had a pretty decent run so far, but the truth is that in our lines of work, we're complete opposites." A half-moon-eyed expression appeared on his face. "Despite anything that you may see otherwise in the future, tantei-kun, I still hate you as much as you hate me."

The not-kid paused to think that over before nodding. "Good. So what's the real bet?"

Again, that strange expression that seemed to be a mocking smirk but was actually the most hollow thing Conan had ever seen came onto the thief's face before he spoke, "What would you say, tantei-kun, if I were to say we're after the same thing?"

"What?"

"Don't waste time asking questions you know the answer to, tantei-kun."

Shinichi stared at Kid for a long moment before frowning. "But we're not after the same thing...you're a thief," he rationalize, pointing up at the taller teenager. "You steal. I'm a detective." He pointed to himself. "I catch people like you." Again he pointed at the kaitou.

"Oh?"

"What 'oh'? Of course!"

"Are you _sure_, tantei-kun?"

Shinichi hesitated for a moment, looking from the phantom thief to his foot which covered the coin and then back again. His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "You said there wouldn't be any tricks," he said quietly in a warning manner.

Kid adopted a wounded look. "Would I break my word?" He sweatdropped at the look he was given. "Okay, I take that back. In any case, are you completely, one hundred percent sure that we have nothing in common except for occasionally running into one another, tantei-kun? Like say..." A small grin was barely visible on the thief's face at that moment. "Figures in black who like to murder innocents?"

That made some things click within Conan's not-so-young mind, though all he could do was stare at Kid in surprise while the young man--who practically admitted to being around the age of 17--watched the reaction with that strangely not-passive expression. Finally, after a few moments of calming himself down and forcing himself _not_ to look around at every shadow to make sure there _were_ no 'figures in black' in the room, Shinichi narrowed his eyes suspiciously and asked, "And what gave you the idea that we're after the same thing with those people?"

"Hm..." the kaitou hummed in a vague manner before closing his eyes almost tiredly. "Well...that's where our bits of knowledge comes in. I don't know _exactly_ how _you're_ involve with them, and for all _you_ know, _I_ could be one of _them_--"

"Definitely not."

"Heh?" Kid's eyes shot open and blinked in surprise. "Why do you say that?"

Shinichi watched him with half-mast eyes that showed this wasn't what he wanted to discuss. "Kaitou Kid all in white...work for those people all in black? It doesn't add up. That and your no-one-gets-hurt policy." His eyes relaxed then before his expression closed into a quiet, saddened look. "They've hurt you before, haven't they?"

"...yeah, you could say that."

He closed his eyes in a manner similar to Kid's. "Like they did to me?"

Kid snorted. "To be honest, I think you're a tad luckier than the one I'm trying to find them for."

Shinichi winced slightly at that. "Sorry," he said quietly, knowing the only other outcome besides being shrunken.

"Eh," the kaitou said, giving a slight shrug, not willing to give away what he was feeling--as per usual. Instead, he managed a smile that looked completely realistic and said, "Anyway, the fact is that I'm almost completely sure that we're after the same thing." At the surprised look he was given, Kid sweatdropped. "Don't tell me that you, meitantei, threw in with others in the crowd and figured I did all the thieving just for fun or fame..."

Shinichi flushed in embarrassment, cursing himself for actually falling into that group that had been describe. "Well, what _was_ I supposed to think!" he asked haughtily. "You never really give anything away--giving out notes, going to heists, leaving with the objects (_sometimes_, that is), and then returning said objects later on? Besides a few conversations here and there--most of which include me threatening to arrest you while you joke your way around things--"

"I'm wounded that you didn't take my ocean-and-sky talk more seriously, tantei-kun--"

"--_we_--" Shinichi gestured between the two of them. "--know _nothing_ about one another...though I have a strong suspicion that you have more information about me than I have about you..."

Kid beamed. "Yep."

"Typical," the shrunken detective muttered to himself before sighing. "So I'm guessing that this bet is going to result in some sort of truce?"

Another atypical beaming grin. "Why, I would never do something so roundabout, tantei-kun!" the thief exclaim before pausing and placing a finger on his cheek. "Now that you mention it, though, _that_ kind of bet wouldn't work at _all_ if we were just fighting with each other all the time, ne?"

Shinichi smiled with gritted teeth. "You sly bastard..."

"Oi, oi," Kid said with a frown. "Little kids shouldn't have such mouths! What has your mother been teaching you, Edogawa Conan-kun?"

The mocking was not lost on the smaller teenager's part. "Ah ha ha..." he said dully, glaring at the thief for making a slight at his position. "Hear me laugh, O' Mighty King of Laughter. You really are a bastard, I hope you know."

"Yeah, yeah," the kaitou said, waving it off as he lifted his foot and then bent over to pick up the coin, keeping it in his closed fist. "So let's bet. I'm more at an advantage than you--and I'm not just talking about height here--"

"One more short joke and your _shin_ is going to meet my shoe in a rather violent manner--"

Kid continued on, undeterred, "--so I'll give you a clue." He then tossed over the coin, which Shinichi had to dive to the side to catch. When the not-kid looked up again, Kid had one foot out the window.

"Wait a minute!" Shinichi shouted as the other teenager swung his other leg over the sill.

"Na?" the thief asked in a curious manner, blinking in surprise.

"You didn't finish laying out the rules for the bet or what the bet really _is_, for that matter!"

"I didn't?" Kid blinked again before looking up to the quarter-moon hanging in the sky. "Ah, well...maybe it's not really a bet so much as a dare, tantei-kun. But yeah..." He looked behind himself to grin at the shrunken detective once more. "The bet is this. I bet you that I can steal the moon before you can find out my name."

There was a long period of silence.

"Eh...?" Shinichi asked in a clueless manner.

Turning back to look at the night sky, the internationally wanted thief took in a deep breath before letting it out slowly and smiling slightly. "Well, I'm done for tonight." He waved his hand in the air a bit again before adding, "Be sure to get back to your 'neechan' before she get worried, Conan-kun!" and then dropped down from the window and out of view.

It took Shinichi a moment to realize that they were on the second story window. "Wonder if he'll survive a landing like that..." he muttered to himself before bringing the coin close to his face to study it. After a moment of staring, however, he swore to himself and ran out of the room and then downstairs so he could inform the police that he'd received a Kid note.

There was a reason why Shinichi preferred murderers over thieves--especially _phantom_ thieves. They always seemed to make _everything_ into double meanings! And at this rate, Kid would win the bet where the conditions were...

Shinichi froze on the bottom step before clenching his fists and shouting, forgetting that the police and Mouri father and daughter duo were just a room away, "YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!"

He'd let Kaitou Kid get away without explanations for the winnings of the bet.

_With a flip of the coin, the choice is made.  
No tricks of my own, but tricks of the other before me.  
Invisible, quarter, half, three-quarters or full--  
All its worth is measured in gold. _

Await my next note three days from now, Nakamori-keibu!

-Kaitou Kid XD

P.S.  
Be expecting more of a performance.  
Magic is in my blood, tantei-kun! ♥

.  
.  
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**-fin-**

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_Author's Notes:_ XDDD So teh lame! But I wanted to write and so I did. Hm...yeah...I dun feel like writing the heist and the ending of the bet. Well...it's more like Kaito's not willing to inspire me with anything and Shinichi/Conan is glowering about being duped by the thief -snickers- So...yeah...crappiness lives on :D 


End file.
